There is something special that sets the master smith apart from the rest of his trade, or that means that the master swordsman can slice through an opponent’s armour.  To the majority of the people it is not known whether it is just years of training that makes them this way or a special magick that is the secrets of their art. 

  

When the Maestir came to these lands it was the Fae that taught them about the spirits.  The Spirit realm overlays and mirrors our own and every creature and natural object has its own spirit in that realm.  It is the Naturae who come from this realm and walk amongst us all.  The Fae believe that the Gods are just powerful spirits who have looked down upon this place fuelled by thousands of years of ritual worship. 

  

The amount of connection to the Spirit Realm that a person has is determined by their Wyrd.  Fae naturally have a high Wyrd and this allows them to control the sprits well – however they found that the humans have a natural affinity with the spirit world too.  It is thought this is why they decided to teach them their secrets and stop treating them as invaders to their land. 

  

A person has a set amount of Wyrd a day and this replenishes at dawn (as the spirit world awakens at the rising of the sun). To learn a spirit rite a person needs to be skilled in an art or craft.  To know about the Spirit realm has no advantage in its own right but it allows you to know the secrets of your trade.  By a simple amount of preparation they can become masters of their art.  Although some may think that a master tracker is looking for signs of a passing person and trying to follow their places – what they are actually doing is communing with the spirits of the forest and following the clues and hints left by them. 

  

Some people have a connection with the realms of Vitae and Shadow.  This connection seems to block their link to the spirit world and they are unable to use their Wyrd.  The Risen always have a link to the Realm of Shadow and as such may never use Wyrd.

 

All rites are active skills.  They are generally done alone, however it is possible for anyone who has the pre-requisite skills and rites to aid with a rite.  If more than one person takes part in the rite then any of the contributors may spend their Wyrd instead of the Rite Leader.  You cannot aid Combat Rites, Herbalism Rites and Naturae Rites this way. 

 

You cannot use any active skills whilst performing a rite – so you may not fight during the rite stage.

 

If you purchase Rites as a starting character, you gain two rites instead of one skill – so long as you have the pre-requisites for them.

 

 

Requires:  Naturae

 

Naturae rites are a unique ability that is only able to be learnt by Naturae.  They allow the Naturae to become one with their inner spirit and gain mystical properties for short periods of time.  

Unlike other rites, 1 wyrd card will allow all the Naturae rites known by that Naturae to be cast. This should be tied to the Naturae’s arm with a blue ribbon.

A Naturae rite takes one minute per Naturae rite known – and it must use all the rites that the Naturae knows.  The effects of the rites last for thirty minutes – at the end of the rite the Naturae is under the Blight state for thirty minutes.  This state cannot be cured.